June 30, 2025
U.S. Army Soldiers Join Forces in International Training Event
BEMOWO PISKIE TRAINING AREA, Poland —
Summarize this one: Approximately 300 soldiers representing the United States, Poland, Romania, Lithuania, Sweden and the Czech Republic participated in NATO Exercise Brave Boar from May 17-19, 2025.
The exercise, hosted by the Polish Land Forces 16th Mechanized Division and focused on enhancing joint combat operations in a complex urban environment.
Each nation played a specific role in the collaborative maneuver, including air-supported suppressive fire, air assault and insertion, air medical evacuation, rapid land deployment of personnel, tactical building entry and clearance, engaging enemy forces and close-quarter combat.
“This is all about forming a team, we have multiple organizations all coming together, each bringing something to the table, but in the end, we have the same objective,” said U.S. Army Lt. Col. William Branch, commander of NATO Multinational Battle Group Poland. “One thing I want my soldiers to take away from this experience is to learn from our partner allies and teach them that despite our different backgrounds, we’re all in this together as one element.” U.S. participation included soldiers assigned to Charlie Company, 1st Battalion, 64th Armored Regiment, 1st Armored Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division, in support of Task Force Iron. Their role involved the rapid deployment of two squads of personnel using Joint Light Tactical Vehicles equipped with M240B machine guns and two Polish Mine-Resistant Ambush Protected vehicles with the objective of seizing and securing two buildings occupied by armed enemy forces.
Moments before the exercise began, the silence across the simulated urban training site was palpable before an amalgamation of gunfire and explosions erupted throughout the area. Above the gunfire an F-16 Flying Falcon cut across the sky paired delivering simulated fire support. Following the first round of air support, unmanned aerial observation drones were sent into the compound to assess the environment and prepare for ground support. “We always treat exercises like this as if they were happening,” said U.S. Army Sgt. Ryan Schurman, an infantryman with Charlie Company, whose fire-team was first to make entry. “There’s no way to predict what could be waiting for us inside or what will happen, so we take everything seriously to stay prepared.”
“It’s always wonderful working with our partner allies every chance we get, especially for these types of exercises,” said Polish Land Forces Master Corporal Robert Ryzco, a recon section leader assigned to the 16th Mechanized Brigade embedded with Charlie Company during the exercise. “I love seeing how our way of room clearing compares to the Americans’ method, and every nation has learned something from one another during the event.” Collaborative training exercises like Brave Boar offer soldiers an immersive opportunity to improve communication and operate as a unified force on the battlefield.
Task Force Iron’s mission is to engage in multinational training and exercises across the continent to increase lethality, while strengthening partnerships with NATO allies and regional security partners. The task force provides combat-credible forces to V Corps, America’s only forward-deployed corps in Europe.